Mechanism



H. L. WILLIAMS. MUD CLEANING MECHANISM FOR TRACTOR WHEELS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 19, 1919.

Patented May 25, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

W1 TNESSES N VEN TOR. g R 2 g $0M- [w H. L. WILLIAMS.

MUD CLEANING MECHANISM FOR TRACTOR WHEELS. APPLICATION FILED MAY l9,l9l9.

1,341,093, Patented May 25, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- IN VEN TOR. wmjnak W fic/MM UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

HARTWEBL It. wiLLmMs, or BEAUMONT, reams.

MUDrGIvEANING MEGHANJSM' F03 ThAGTOfl-WIIEEL$.

Specification of Letters Iatent.

Patented May 25, 19-20.

To all whom]. it may. com-em:

Be it known that 15, tisnmwunn L. W t- Ltalus, a itizen of the UnitedStates, residing. at Beaumont, in, the county of Jefferson, and State of'Igexas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mudleeninge han sm ten r der-Wh s. of which the followingv is a specification.

T s n nt on e at t tra tor a more particularly to Iiiud cleaningmechanism fiortraetor wheels.

The main object 0t my invent on 15 to provide rn e'chanismv whereby mud,can be cleaned automatically from and between cleats or earth clutchesand from the nuns of tractor Wheels while the wheels are in m t ve- A,further Objwt to provide mud cleaningmgehanisn for tractor wheels, ofsuch Si lehereete hat i ew e W 3. a ent: ed; n disa s m nd hi h allbsimple and durable in construotlol PQSLtLVe in aetipn, compact in formand agpl-icabie s. Mim -19 to any h ty 0 ra r common in use which dependupon the two a whe s to ra t ther obj ct an dvan ag 1 ppea in the,following descr ption,

llfiy invention is illustrated in the accom- Pa was. raw gs w We 1 is aside elevation of a tr aetor, sbour ig the rear power wheels equippedwith my, clowning mechanism.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged eleyation of a tractot wheel: see-arms; wt s theloose mu m of my" iad deems emb l ish,

F g. it a, sle 3m te. twi te -whee equipped h m wtelse mg m nbee sls- 4s ows a P li Q i 0t a e i know w st s wheel; new 601 5 393 i use, no Q.spe d with a mu cleanses mec an sme*. 5 ema ske eton p rti n pi my oose;time we a t eeewe th ls gtso heel we llu trate n E & 6 skew a s1. -p etes .0 i to fit e s t e pe i g h n i lus trated in Fig. 5.

7 hows. a Powe f! mud le n m o w sm mplete y as embled without the mudplow and fitted to a portion of a wheel rim Fig 8- 5 a skeleton port onof ray ud i e nver ed o. how a. method f wunug the egifigig meth r' forss erfilqtm and. dug use i punsos s nis .gum o show my; idea, I haveshown the nuts on the inside of the side rim, in reality they should beon the outside. and the bolt heads should be on the inside. I have also.omitted the protr ding flanges in this figure for clearness.

Corresponding, and like parts are referred to in the followingdescription and indicated in all the views of the. accompanying drawingsby the same relierense characters.

t mpr m ea ses me nism, as stated before, is applicable in principle toany of the styles of tractors common in use which depend upon the tworeal; power wheels for traction and such a tractor is illustrated in theaccom anying drawings, in the. figures of which A) designates thegasolene tank, (13,) the radiator, (C)v the engine compartment, (D) thecrank shaft an steering gear ou na i he Seat,

(G) the steering wheel and (H) a plot of earth,

The 10w 1, as best seen in Fig. 3-, is swung row a supporting rod 7 thisrod 7 u te n a g n h m gh f m 3. and is. held in place by the bolt 5 inthe base or head oi the lever 4 and; may be turned by this leverproyiding thereby a means for lifting the plow to an inoperativeposition when desired. Slot 6 in the upright frame 3 is a rest for lever4: when the plow is raised and at rest in an inoperative position. Theplow 1 is swung from rod 7 by two supporting arms 8 and 8 and issw-u-ngtar enough ahead of rod if to cause the plow to rest upon the loose rimof its ow weight. Bolted to the ower en o plow L and extendingdiagonally aoross the 995s m is h P ow p int or runn This point isintended to engage and run upon the top of the loo ud rim a l wing theplow wing to come down. to the rim hut not allowing it to some incontactwith the metal plates, this point, 2 is also intended to bite or outinto the dirt or mud L ng 11 on the r m and! hold the plow ste m {Y andr y pon e rim and a the som time. loosening the. dirt from the. Theupright f ame 3' is fastened to the axle boas ing; or to the treotor asmay best wit the tractor to which it is applied and may bemodifiedaccordingly.

In the loose mud rim, 12 and 12* designate the side rims to each ofwhich are riveted the cross plates 1:0. These cross P ates are spacedfiafr enough apart to allow an opening etween. them suflieien ly ange toreceive the cleats ll of the wheel rim 18 in the different ositions towhich they may play. Protrucing from the side rims 12 and 12 atintervals or from between each opening of the cross plates are bent overflanges 14 on each side rim to act as sliding supports or bases for thecurved side holds 16 of the sliding plates 9 which fit over theopionings between the cross plates 10. In each plate 9 is a slot 15 intowhich the cleats 11 fit snugly.

To apply my loose mud rim to tractor wheels having cleats, lugs or earthclutches of different design from those I have illustrated and describedin the accompanying drawings and in the specifications, it is understoodthat the slots and openings of the cross plates and sliding plates maybe modified without departing from the principle of my invention or theloose rim may be made solid or of one piece having holes or openings toreceive the cleats, lugs or earth clutches of the tractor wheel rimwithout departing from the principle of my invention. It is preferable,however, to construct my loose rim in three or four sections, joinedtogether, for assembling and disassembling purposes as illustrated inFig. 8.

The operation of my invention is as follows: In Fig. 1 the mechanism isseen as it would appear on a tractor in operation, the loose mud rimsfit entirely around the rear traction wheels. As the tractor wheel iswithin the loose rim it serves as a continuous track for the tractorwheel. the openings in the loose rim between the cr ss plates 10, andalso the slots 15 in the sliding plates 9 permit the cleats to protrudeand sink in the earth to give traction and the tractor wheel keeps theloose rim pinned to the earth at the bottom of the wheel at all timesand forces the loose rim to revolve with the tractor wheel and at thesame time keeps the top portion of the loose rim raised, in effect,until the cleats are inclosed at the top of the wheel which permits theplow to rest on the flat surface of the loose rim unobstructed by thecleats. As the mud rim has a greater circumference than the tractorwheel t, therefore, fits loosely and as the cleats 11 of the tractorwheel come in contact with and bury themselves in the earth, the earthcomes in contact with the loose mud rim and presses it up until it ispinned to the bottom of the tractor wheel rim and is forced to revolvewith the tractor wheel and as the cleats continue to sink into the earththrough the openings in the loose rim, the loose rim is kept pressed upand against the tractor wheel rim at the bottom constantly which alsokee s the top port on of the loose rim raised t ereloy presenting a flatsurface on the top portion of the loose rim on which the plow canoperate without any obstruction as the cleats are entirely out of theway of the plow on the top portion of the rim while, on the other hand,they are protruding through the openings in the rim at the bottom andgive the desired traction to the wheel. it is now seen, as the mud rimis raised at the top of the wheel, the mud, which accunuilaied betweenthe cleats while at the bottom or buried in the earth, is now raisedfrom between the cleats and is laying on the flat surface of the mud rimand will be plowed off by the plow as the wheel turns. The mud plow wingis held slightly off of the metal mud rim by the plow point 2 which isbetween the plow wing and the mud rim, otherwise the plow wing wouldsoon wear out by continually running on the metal mud rim, the plowpoint 2 which does run on the metal mud rim bolted to the plow l and canbe easily replaced when worn out. The plow and point may be raised untillever 4 rests in. slot 6 of the upright frame 3 thereby throwing theplow to an inoperative position when desired. As the loose mud rim israised at the bottom by the earth when the cleats bury themselves in theearth, it is clear that wide enough openings must be provided betweenthe cross plates 10 to prevent these cross plates from binding thecleats on the right and left horizontal diametrical points of the wheelrim as the loose rim is raised. These openings are covered by slidinglates 9 each having a slot 15 through which the cleats protrude and asthe mud rim is raised or lowered these plates 9, being held by thecleats, slide on the surface of the mud rim leaving it free to be raisedor lowered but still keep the openings in the mud rim covered preventingany mud from entering.

What I claim is:

1. A mud cleaning mechanism for cleated tractor wheels including a looserim, of somewhat greater circumference than and adapted to fit looselyaround the tractor wheel to which it is applied, operatively connectedto the tractor wheel so as to revolve with it, and having openin 5covered b slidingly connected sliding p ates, said p ates having slotsto receive and allow the traction cleats to protrude for traction, meansfor cleaning mud from the loose rim surface as the tractor wheel andloose rim revolve.

2. A mud cleanin mechanism for cleated tractor wheels inc uding a looserim of greater circumference than the tractor wheel to which it isapplied, adapted to revolve as the tractor wheel revolves, and havingopenings spaced aroundthe loose rim at intervals and covered by slidinglates having'slots to receive the traction '0 cats of the tractor wheel,side rims constructed on each side of the loose rim so as to fit overthe tractor wheel rim edges and prevent mud from entering at the sidesand accumulating between the loose rim and the tractor wheel rim surfaceand, at the same time, providing an additional means for holding theloose rim on the tractor wheel.

3. A mud cleaning inc: hanisni for cleated tractor wheels including aloose rim, of greater circunifcrence than the tractor wheel to which itis applied, operating loosely around and revolving with the t actorwheel, said loose rim having openings to receive the traction cleats,sliding plates slidingly connected to the loose rim and covering theopenings in the loose rim and having slots to receive the tractioncleats of the tractor wheel rim.

4. A mud cleaning mechanism for cleated tractor wheels including a looserim of greater circumference than the tractor wheel to which it isapplied, operatively connected to and adapted to revolve with thetractor wheel, said loose rim having openings covered by sliding plates,said plates provided with slots to receive the traction cleats, siderims on each side of the loose rim fitting over the tractor wheel rimedges, said side rims provided with lugs at intervals to form suitablesliding bases for slidingly connected sliding plates which operateslidingly on the surface of the loose rim.

5. A mud cleaning mechanism for cleated tractor wheels including a looserim having side rims and cross plates, said cross plates riveted to theside rims and spaced to provide openings large enough to receive thetraction cleats of the tractor wheel, sliding plates, with slots toreceive the traction cleats, said plates covering the openings providedbetween the cross plates and having bent over ends to slidingly engagesuitable lugs on the side rims.

6. In a mud cleaning mechanism for clcated tractor wheels, thecombination with a loose rim of greater circumference than and adaptedto revolve with the tractor wheel to which it is applied, o't'a plowwing swung, from a suitable supporting frame, so as to rest of its ownweight upon the surface of the loose rim, a point or runner bolted tothe plow wing, said runner engaging and extending across the surface ofthe loose rim ahead of said plow wing so as to cut Inud away from thesurface of the loose rim ahead of the wing and at the same time adaptedto hold the plow wing slightly off of the surface of the loose rim,means for shifting the plow wing and runner to an inoperative positionwhen desired.

7. In a mud cleaning mechanism for tractor wheels, the combination witha loose rim of greater circumference than and. adapted to revolve withthe tractor wheel to which it is applied, of a plow supporting framehaving bearings to house a plow wing supporting rod, a plow wing swungfrom said supporting rod so as to rest of its own weight upon thesurface of the loose rim, a runner attached to the plow wing so as toextend diagonally across and out mud away from the surface of the looserim ahead of the plow wing, a lever attached to the plow wing supportingrod, said lever adapted to shift the plow wing and runner to aninoperative position.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HARTVVELL L. WILLIAMS. lVitnesses:

F. H. HANEY, CARL M. PEARGY.

